Rupasree Banerjee vs The State Of West Bengal & Ors
2024 Latest Caselaw 4915 Cal

Calcutta High Court (Appellete Side)

Rupasree Banerjee vs The State Of West Bengal & Ors on 23 September, 2024

Author: Jay Sengupta

Bench: Jay Sengupta

                          HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA
                       CONSTITUTIONAL WRIT JURISDICTION
                                     APPELLATE SIDE

Present:
THE HON'BLE JUSTICE JAY SENGUPTA


                                          WPA 22000 of 2024

                                            Rupasree Banerjee
                                                  Vs.
                                     The State of West Bengal & Ors.



For the petitioner           :                Mr. Ekramul Bari,
                                              Sk. Imtiaj uddin.

For the State                    :            Mr. Biswabrata Basu Mallick ld.AGP.,
                                              Ms. Parna Roy Chowdhury.


Heard on                     :                23.09.2024

Judgment on                  :                23.09.2024




JAY SENGUPTA, J:


1.     This is an application, inter alia, praying for release of House Rent

Allowance, current and arrears, in favour of the petitioner.


2.     Affidavit of service filed on behalf of the petitioner is taken on record.


3.     Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner submits as follows.

The petitioner is an approved Assistant Teacher at Rajarhat Sikshaniketan for

Girls'. The husband of the petitioner being an employee of a private company is
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receiving House Rent Allowance (HRA) as a separate engagement. The District

Inspector of Schools (S.E.), North 24-Parganas, relying on the Memorandum of

the Finance Department (Audit Branch), Government of West Bengal bearing

No.5839-F(P) dated July, 09, 2012 and the Corrigendum Memorandum thereto

bearing No.8012-F(p2)/FA/O/2m/ 206/17(N.B.) dated December 27, 2018,

stopped the payment of HRA to the petitioner. A Coordinate Bench of this Court

by the judgment dated March 16, 2021 passed in WPA 1389 of 2018 (Mousumi

Biswas & Ors. State of West Bengal & Ors.) has quashed the aforementioned

memoranda. An appeal being MAT 1023 of 2021 (The State of West Bengal &

Ors. vs. Mita Majumder & Ors.) against the said judgment and order of the said

Coordinate Bench is pending. But, no order of stay has been passed in the said

appeal. Relying on this judgment, relief has been granted to a similarly

circumstanced Assistant Teacher by an order dated 21.05.2024 passed in WPA

14006 of 2024. In view of the same, the petitioner would be entitled to full HRA

along with interest on the arrears.


4.     Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the State denies the allegations

made in the writ petition and submits that if, at all, any relief is granted to the

petitioner, the same has to be subject to the decision of the appeal being MAT

1023 of 2021.


5.     It appears that the above-referred memoranda were quashed by a

Coordinate Bench of this Court. However, an appeal is pending over the issue.

But, no stay has been granted in the said appeal.
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Relying on the said decision, another Coordinate Bench of this Court has

granted appropriate relief in favour of similarly circumstanced Assistant

Teacher.


6.      In the present facts which are quite similar, I find no reason to take a

different view.


7.      Therefore, the concerned respondent authorities are directed to release

the HRA, both current and arrear in favour of the petitioner, the arrear thereof

be paid to the petitioner with interest @ 6% per annum from the date on which it

became payable till the date of payment. Such payment shall be made within a

period of six weeks from the date of communication of this order.

8. It is, however, made clear that the payment of HRA in terms of this order

is subject to the result of the above referred pending appeal.

9. Accordingly, the writ petition is disposed of.

10. As affidavits were not called for, allegations contained in the writ petition

are deemed not to have been admitted.

11. Urgent photostat certified copy of this order may be supplied to the

parties expeditiously, if applied for.

(Jay Sengupta, J)

NB/07